Fewer than 100 manufacturers of fitness equipment operate in the U.S., with combined annual sales of about three billion dollars ($3,000,000,000). Major products are aerobic exercisers and strength training and traditional weightlifting equipment. In addition, there is a large number of supplementary products. This type of equipment allows individuals to exercise by themselves in a limited space. The two (2) major market segments for fitness equipment are the home and the institutional exercise equipment market. The home market is by far the largest and has grown significantly in the past decade.
Physical fitness and health considerations are areas of highest concern among Americans today. More than ever, people are frequenting health clubs and performing exercise routines at home in order to lose weight, improve muscle tone and maintain a healthy lifestyle. Many people are turning to exercise machines such as treadmills, weight machines, stationary bicycles and the like to help in these endeavors. A recent addition to such machines is the stair stepping machine, which mimics the motion required to climb a flight of stairs. Such machines do an excellent job but they are often large in size and suitable for use only in a permanent gym or exercise room setup. Those with limited space at home, or those who wish to use a stair stepping machine while traveling, are often out of luck.
Various attempts have been made to provide stepping type exercise machines. Examples of these attempts can be seen by reference to several U.S. patents. U.S. Pat. No. 6,582,343 filed by Lin and Chen discloses an adjustable step exerciser.    U.S. Pat. No. 6,387,014 filed by Lai discloses a foldable body building device.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,803,880 filed by Allen discloses a stepper/climber exerciser.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,658,222 filed by Brown discloses portable personal gym aerobic exercise equipment.    U.S. Pat. No. D,369,390 filed by Haber et al. discloses a ladder climbing exerciser.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,407,407 filed by Lin discloses a foldable stepping exerciser assembly.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,403,254 filed by Lundin and Stevens discloses a foldable step climber exerciser machine.    U.S. Pat. No. 5,222,927 filed by Chang discloses a collapsible stepper climber exerciser.    U.S. Pat. No. 4,900,012 filed by Fu discloses a leg exercising system.
While these devices fulfill their respective, particular objectives, each of these references suffer from one (1) or more of the aforementioned disadvantages. Many such apparatuses are not fully collapsible. Also, many such apparatuses are not collapsible and transportable without disassembly or use of tools. Furthermore, many such apparatuses are not widely adjustable to accommodate a variety of users. Accordingly, there exists a need for a collapsible step exercising machine without the disadvantages as described above. The development of the present invention substantially departs from the conventional solutions and in doing so fulfills this need.